From the purple dyeshed...

EDITED TO ADD:  All the rooms have now been reserved.  I am, however, opening a waiting list in case those who have reserved rooms need to drop out for any reason, so please still get in touch if you are interested.

Thank you for the magnificent (and quick!) response to this retreat.

 



There has been a lot of underwater paddling been going on over the last few weeks - spreadsheets have been involved, as well as a lot of discussion, agreement, and many, many emails.  All to get us to this point.  I am very happy to announce that the Ripples Crafts 2015 retreat is now in the planning.  If you want to know more about last year's retreat, then you can read all about it here and here.



The 2015 Retreat will be held at Glencanisp Lodge, near Lochinver in October 2015.  As in past years this is a retreat, not a classes-based holiday.  No fibre classes or lessons are arranged during the week and the idea is that you take time out from your day to day life, bring any fibre based projects which you want to work on and simply learn from the experience of others while you are here.

Things will be organised a little differently this year in that instead of booking through Glencanisp Lodge, I will be handling all the booking admin.   Before I get to that, though, here are the important details:

Date:   Monday 5th October - Sunday 11th October

Where:  Glencanisp Lodge, Lochinver

What is included:  Your accommodation and all meals, teas and coffees.  There may even be cake ....



What is not included: anything other than your room, food and tea and coffee!  Please bring your own alcohol if you wish.

What is the price:  The price for 6 nights full board is £465 for single occupancy and £405 per person if you share a room.  Rooms will be allocated on a strictly first come first served basis.

When do I have to pay?:  A non-refundable deposit of £100 will be due on booking, and the final amount will be due 10 weeks before the event (i.e. 27th July 2015).  Once final payment is made there are no refunds unless the room is re-let in which case you will receive your payment less the deposit paid.  All payments must be made by BACs transfer or by credit card over the phone on or before the due date.

What if I get sick and can't come?: Please take out travel insurance to cover all eventualities

I have a special diet - can you cater for me?:  Lindsay and Lizzi, who are doing the catering, can try to accommodate a reasonable range of dietary requirements.  The best thing is to contact me directly about your requirements so that I can check if Lizzi and Lindsay can cater for your specific needs.  There will always be a vegetarian option.

How many spaces are available?  All bedrooms can either be double or twin rooms.  We need a minimum number to make the event feasible.  If you want to save a bit on the cost, buddy up with a friend and share a room to be more sociable, or bring a partner.  The bedrooms are spacious enough to accommodate 2 people.



As I said above, things are being organised a little differently this year.  I will be taking all the bookings, and payments will be made to me, not to Glencanisp Lodge.  This is simply because The Lodge don't have the staff available to deal with all the enquiries.  Also, because of an increase in the cost of renting of the lodge this year, there is one change to the details above which you may have noticed.  There is no mention of a yarn bundle.  This is because the price would have had to increase significantly over last year's cost if I included the bundle, and I wanted to keep the price of the event close to what it was last year.

So, the big question:

How do I book my place?:  At the moment I need to gauge interest to ensure that the minimum number to make the retreat viable will be met.  Once I know the retreat is likely to go ahead, then I will contact you to offer you a place, and I will do this in the order in which I received your initial response.  Once you have read all of the above carefully, if you think you'd like to come, then please email me on retreats@ripplescrafts.com and please put "Retreat 2015" as the subject.  Please include in your email whether you want single or double occupancy of a room.  It is up to you to find a friend to share with - I will not be allocating shared rooms between strangers!



Who wants to come?